


Stitching My Heart

by Mademoisellesnowflake



Category: The Musketeers (2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Hurt/Comfort, I didn't mean for this to happen I swear, M/M, Minor Character Death, Unrelated to my other Modern AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2018-12-08 05:44:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11640129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mademoisellesnowflake/pseuds/Mademoisellesnowflake
Summary: Modern AU mostly from the perspective of Porthos du Vallon, an orphaned high school student from Paris who accidentally cannonballs himself into the life of Aramis d'Herblay and his family and soon finds that the family of Aramis is also the family of Aramis' friends. Includes love-struck idiots, high school shenanigans and a Spanish-French family with a lot of love to share.There will be a plot but many chapters can be read as one-shots as well!





	1. Letting Me Inside

René d’Herblay, a high school student in Paris who usually went by his nickname Aramis, had known Porthos du Vallon as his classmate and friend for a few months. They had befriended very easily; they had liked each other as soon as they’d begun talking to each other and started spending time with each other. They joked easily and fell into each other’s rhythm effortlessly. Aramis sometimes worried for Porthos when he appeared at school with new bruises and sometimes even cut lips. Porthos wouldn’t tell Aramis where he had got all the bruises so Aramis always frowned and tried to clean the bruises whenever there were new ones.

So, when Aramis found himself opening his window for Porthos one night to get him inside from the rain, he wasn’t as surprised as one might think he’d be but he was still rather surprised. Porthos was actually bleeding and Aramis was quite sure he was also limping.

“What happened, Porthos?” Aramis asked quietly as he helped Porthos inside and ran to the bathroom to get a towel for Porthos to dry his hair on. “You’re bleeding… did someone hurt you? Do you need us to call the police? I can patch you up and we have food downstairs, I can get you some…”

“Don’t call the police”, Porthos said. “There’s no need to bother them with me… I just… could I stay here for tonight?”

Aramis’ eyes softened at Porthos’ slightly uncertain tone and he grabbed Porthos’ hands. He led Porthos to sit on his bed and began drying Porthos’ hair.

“Of course, you can stay for the night”, Aramis said softly. “I’ll get the spare mattress if you don’t want to sleep on the same bed with me. Is it alright if I tell my parents you’re here? Do yours know you’re here?”

“My foster parents don’t really care”, Porthos whispered. “They’re not home much and they text like once a week to make sure I’m alive. They don’t need to know… You can tell yours; this is your home after all… I just hope they won’t throw me away…”

 _Ah_ , Aramis thought, _foster parents. No wonder he’s always looked so lonely…_

“No, they won’t”, Aramis said. “My dad will most likely make us some night snacks and get you some warm and dry clothes to sleep in.”

“Thanks”, Porthos muttered. Aramis smiled sadly and went downstairs where his father was reading a book.

“Papá?” Aramis asked quietly. “Could my friend stay here for tonight? He got himself hurt nearby and he kind of lives far away…”

“Of course he can stay here”, Oscar, Aramis’ father, said. “Let him in and I’ll make you two some snacks.”

“I, uh… I already let him in”, Aramis mumbled. “He climbed to my window…”

“Oh”, Oscar said. “Well, then, take your mother’s first aid kit and help him with whatever he’s hurt while I make you some evening snacks.”

Aramis nodded and hurried to fetch the first aid kit from the downstairs bathroom and then hurried back upstairs. Porthos was still sitting on Aramis’ bed and staring at his hands that had some nasty bruising. Aramis sat next to Porthos and opened the first aid kit and looked at Porthos’ face.

“Are you hurt anywhere else besides your face and hands?” Aramis asked.

“Might have hurt my left knee”, Porthos mumbled. “What did your parents say?”

“I’ll get some ice for it after I’ve looked at it”, Aramis said. “Papá said you can stay and that he’ll make some evening snacks for us. I’ll take care of you.”

“Why?” Porthos asked.

“Because we’re friends”, Aramis said, “and because that looks painful. And I want to help.”

“No, I mean… why are you being so kind?” Porthos asked.

“Because I believe every human should be treated with basic decency”, Aramis said. “And because we’re friends and friends help each other.”

“Are we?” Porthos asked quietly. “I didn’t know I had friends…”

“You have now”, Aramis said and began cleaning the cuts on Porthos’ hands. He bandaged the worst ones and soon moved to clean the cuts on Porthos’ face and make sure none of them was bleeding any longer. Porthos gave Aramis a shy smile when Aramis was finished and then continued staring at his hands.

“Papá should be ready with the snacks soon”, Aramis said. “Unless he decided to make something really fancy in which case we should be careful because he isn’t good at fancy stuff. Mamá does that better; papá is good at making simple and homely snacks.”

“Your father sounds like a nice person”, Porthos muttered with that shy smile still on his face.

“He is”, Aramis said and leaned back to lay on the bed. “I’m very lucky; I have nice parents who’ll take care of my friends who need help. I’m sure they’ll like you now that you’ve finally come over.”

Porthos shrugged awkwardly and continued staring at his hands. Oscar soon knocked on the door and came in holding a tray of iced tea and triangle-cut sandwiches filled with cheese, ham and salad. He smiled at Aramis who was sprawled on the bed and Porthos who was still awkwardly staring at his hands.

“You must be René’s friend”, Oscar said. “I am Oscar, René’s father. Forgive me but René seems to have failed to mention your name; could you tell me what it is?”

“I’m Porthos”, Porthos said and stood up to shake Oscar’s hand. “Porthos du Vallon. Thank you for letting me stay here for tonight.”

“Nonsense; René’s friends are family”, Oscar told with a grin. “And what kind of family wouldn’t let you stay when you need to?”

“In my experience, the family might not always appreciate letting relatives stay over”, Porthos mumbled, “but do so anyway because they feel like it’s their duty.”

“I assure you, to us no one is a ‘duty’”, Oscar said. “And we’re always happy to welcome new family members. It’s been rather lonely lately with our daughters having moved away and my wife working long days at the hospital. I reckon you’ll liven up our house in no time.”

“You’ll scare him away, papá”, Aramis whined but then turned serious. “Can you get something frozen for Porthos? He’s hurt his knee and we need something to help with the swelling.”

“I’ll go get some”, Oscar said and hurried back downstairs.

“Can I take a look?” Aramis asked as he sat up again. “If something is broken, I’ll tell mamá to get you some painkillers from the hospital and maybe a temporary sling too. It should make walking easier but you should still keep your weight off your knee for some time…”

“How are you so good at this?” Porthos blurted suddenly. “We’re sixteen; no one our age knows this stuff.”

“My mamá’s a doctor so I know a lot”, Aramis said and chuckled softly. “I used to read her medical books all the time as a kid since I’ve wanted to be a doctor since I was five… From her I’ve only learnt an inappropriate amount of jokes about giving birth, though…”

Porthos snorted with laughter as Aramis began poking around his knee. He frowned at it and looked at Porthos.

“I’m not sure if it’s broken or not”, Aramis said. “I’ll text mamá and ask her to take the sling with her just in case it is broken. She’ll look at it tomorrow morning if that is okay with you…”

“I… thanks”, Porthos mumbled as Oscar came back with a bag of frozen peas.

“I put some milk on the stove to make us some cocoa”, Oscar said as he wrapped the peas in a towel and handed it to Porthos. “Hold it over the hurt knee and it should help with the pain. Do you like cocoa?”

“I haven’t had cocoa in ages”, Porthos said as his face lit up. “I’d love some…”

“René, do you want some too?” Oscar asked. “Actually, I don’t even need to ask; you always want cocoa.”

“Yes”, Aramis said and grinned. Oscar left again, leaving Aramis and Porthos alone.

“Porthos”, Aramis said suddenly. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to but I was wondering, what are your foster parents like?”

“They’re actually my uncle and his wife”, Porthos explained. “I kind of feel like my uncle doesn’t like taking care of me that much but does it anyway because my mom was his sister… And since no one really knows who my dad is, I can’t just look for his relatives either…”

“I’m sorry”, Aramis said and put his hand on Porthos’ shoulder. “If it’s any consolation, what my papá said is true; you’ll be treated like a family member here. You can stay over as much as you like.”

“Why do you accept me so readily?” Porthos asked quietly.

“I think it’s because papá firmly believes that home is not a place but a feeling”, Aramis said. “And because he wants to give everyone that feeling at least once during their life, especially if they haven’t felt it before.”

“Your father is a funny man”, Porthos said.

“Priests tend to be”, Aramis said. “Thank Heavens he’s not tight-minded like the other priests; so many of them said some disgusting things when my sister told papá she likes girls only…”

“He was okay with it?” Porthos asked. When Aramis nodded, he said. “Funny and a good person, then. I kind of like your family.”

“Good, because you’re a part of it too”, Aramis said and smiled. “Now, do you want to watch a film? Tomorrow is Saturday so no school so papá will let us stay awake long.”

“That would be nice”, Porthos said and for the first time in days, smiled a full smile. He really liked Aramis’ family.


	2. Enter mamá d'Herblay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter number 2 is up! :D This time we meet mamá and Porthos gets to know the family a bit better. From this point on many chapters can be seen as one-shots and read separately and I'd love to get ideas for individual chapters :D (and yes, there will be some romance here too)

When Porthos woke up, he didn’t recognise his surroundings and was about to freak out until he remembered where he was. He had ended up sharing the bed with Aramis because they’d simply been too tired to carry the spare mattress upstairs. Porthos lay on his side facing the room while Aramis was still sleeping between Porthos and the wall. Porthos turned on his back to look at Aramis whose arms were in a comical angle while Aramis’ head was turned to Porthos. When Porthos studied Aramis closer, he noticed that Aramis was drooling slightly as he continued to sleep. Porthos chuckled quietly at the sight; he hadn’t thought Aramis would be a drooling person.

Aramis suddenly stirred an opened his eyes. At first, he looked at Porthos very confusedly and then seemed to realise why Porthos was suddenly on the same bed as him. He then smiled at Porthos and leaned towards Porthos.

“You’re warm”, Aramis muttered. “Want to sleep some more…”

“Shouldn’t we get up?” Porthos asked. “What’s the time…? How long do you usually sleep in weekends?”

“Too early”, Aramis mumbled against Porthos’ chest. “Going to sleep some more…”

Suddenly there was a knock on the door that made Porthos jump. Aramis groaned tiredly and rolled on his back. A woman’s voice asked something in Spanish and Aramis answered exasperatedly. He sighed and sat up.

“Mamá wants us to get up”, Aramis said. “She wants to take a look on your knee and make sure you didn’t hurt it too badly. And we should get some breakfast. What do you usually have for breakfast?”

“I don’t really eat breakfast”, Porthos confessed. “You don’t really have to bother for me…”

“Eggs, toast and juice should be alright?” Aramis asked. When Porthos nodded, Aramis yelled something in Spanish.

“You speak Spanish with your mother?” Porthos asked.

“Yes, I need to keep up my Spanish somehow”, Aramis said. “I see mamá’s relatives like twice a year and that isn’t enough to keep my Spanish good so mamá tries to keep talking Spanish with me.”

“That’s good”, Porthos said with a soft smile. “My mother tried to speak Swahili to me sometimes – her father was a native speaker – but I can’t remember much of it since my uncle never speaks it… I think he’s forgotten the language.”

“You could study it on your own”, Aramis said. “I think papá has a textbook somewhere from his time as a charity worker in Kongo…”

“Your family seems to have done everything”, Porthos said and smiled in wonder. Aramis snorted with laughter and shook his head.

“Papá was just extremely lost in life when he was younger”, Aramis said. “He had no idea what he wanted to be and he didn’t find God until he was like thirty years old or so… He had a lot of time to do whatever he wanted to try and a lot of it was charity work which means he speaks a lot of languages. And sometimes tries to make us really weird food.”

Porthos chuckled at Aramis’ description of his father. It felt rather weird to hear about a family being so normal after not really having a real family. He felt weird about how easily Aramis’ father had accepted Porthos as Aramis’ friend and let him stay. He didn’t remember having many friends and for some reason everyone’s parents had been hostile towards him.

“We should go downstairs before mamá comes here chasing us down with a broom”, Aramis said as he got up and began looking for clothes to wear.

“Why would she come up with a broom to chase us downstairs?” Porthos asked confusedly. “Wouldn’t the smell of food get us there as easily?”

“She liked to play the evil witch with me and my sisters when we were younger”, Aramis said. “I guess the role got stuck. Now get up so I can make my bed.”

Porthos smiled shyly as he got up and began looking for his shirt. Aramis somehow managed to make his bed in record time while Porthos was pulling the slightly small t-shirt over his head. Aramis looked at the shirt and frowned.

“That’s definitely too small”, Aramis muttered. “I wonder if papá has old shirts he could give you so you won’t have to wear too small clothes…”

“Oh no”, Porthos said. “I’m fine, honestly. I just didn’t want to throw this away since it has no holes yet.”

“All the more reason to ask papá to give you some of his old clothes”, Aramis decided. “Let’s go have some breakfast. I really don’t want to make mamá angry when she’s supposed to be getting a good impression of you.”

“Yeah, that would kind of destroy the good impression”, Porthos agreed and followed Aramis downstairs. They were greeted by Oscar who smiled tiredly and waved at them. In the kitchen they met a tall woman with black and curly hair and dark brown eyes and a smile just like Aramis’.

“You must be Porthos”, the woman said. “I’m Diana, René’s – Aramis’ – mother. He told me you’ve hurt your leg; I can take a look at it after you’ve had your breakfast.”

“I really don’t want to trouble you on your weekend, ma’am”, Porthos muttered. “It really isn’t as bad as Aramis probably made it sound…”

“Oh, how polite you are”, Diana remarked and smiled kindly. “Don’t worry, René’s friends are practically family; you don’t have to worry about troubling me because you’ll never be a bother or trouble to us. Now eat your breakfast; I bought some really good ham yesterday that you can put on your toast. I take it you don’t have any allergies or foods you don’t eat?”

“No, I eat pretty much anything”, Porthos said confusedly as Diana led him to sit at the table. “The only thing I can’t stand are pineapples…”

“That’s good”, Diana said. “Now, eat up and when you’re done, put your dishes into the sink – you too, René – and then we can talk.”

Porthos gulped nervously as he began eating his breakfast. Aramis chuckled at Porthos’ worried expression and nodded at his parents.

“They won’t eat you”, Aramis said. “They’ll probably just want to know you better; I haven’t really brought friends over because I haven’t had many. Most friends that I still have are the scouts and since I stopped participating, I’ve only been talking to maybe two of them…”

“Why did you stop participating?” Porthos asked curiously. He had always wanted to be a scout but since he had thought he couldn’t ask his uncle to pay for such a thing, he had never got to be one.

“I broke my leg few years ago and couldn’t participate”, Aramis said. “By the time I was healed, everyone had formed new groups and I felt so much like an outsider that I didn’t want to go to the meetings any more…”

“That’s sad”, Porthos said.

“Well, there’s still Marsac who is still a friend of mine”, Aramis said. “I can be terrible to him as a payback.”

“That… sounds like a very Aramis thing to say”, Porthos said with an unsure smile on his lips. Aramis laughed and continued eating his breakfast. When the two were done, they placed their dishes into the sink and Aramis led Porthos into the living room and sit down on the sofa.

“So, Porthos, let me see that knee of yours”, Diana said. Porthos nodded and rolled up his left trouser leg so that Diana could see his knee. She poked it a little and hummed.

“Nothing seems to be broken”, Diana said. “It’s probably just bruised. Try to not walk on it much; you can stay here for another night if you want to so that you won’t strain your knee too much.”

“Yay, double sleep-over”, Aramis laughed. “Speaking of which, do you have any old shirts that you could give Porthos, papá? His t-shirt is awfully small for him and I’m pretty sure he needs new ones with no holes.”

“I’m fine, Aramis”, Porthos protested. “I’d just rather not ask for money from my uncle… He’s already given me a place to grow up in…”

“I have some old shirts; you can have them if you need them”, Oscar said. “You live with your uncle?”

“Uh… yes”, Porthos mumbled. “My mother died when I was five and my uncle took me in. I’ve kind of been afraid of him since I was a kid so I don’t have many things…”

“Oh, I’m so sorry”, Diana said. “That must have been rough…”

“That’s it; we’re adopting Porthos”, Oscar said. “Not officially but as an honorary member of d’Herblay family. You can come over as much as you like and we’ll give you new things.”

“Oh god”, Aramis mumbled. “Let’s get back upstairs, Porthos, before they start showing you photos of my childhood…”

Porthos chuckled as he followed Aramis back up. This new family sounded amazing to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts, opinions and ideas for future chapters are something I'd love!


	3. Revelations of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big revelations happen in this chapter and the school nurse is introduced! Please enjoy this tooth-rottingly sweet chapter :D

Math was a subject that Aramis generally enjoyed. The numbers usually made a lot of sense for him and calculating was fun because he could easily connect the right numbers in the right way. His teachers had always encouraged the students to try the calculation styles that fit them most and Aramis had found his almost right away. He also could understand the principles behind every calculation and formula very easily which helped his learning a lot.

So when the class was divided into pairs for a small project and Aramis got paired up with Porthos, who had snuck up into Aramis’ room ten days before, he couldn’t have been happier. Their assignment was to build a miniature of something and calculate the dimensions of both the miniature and the original. Aramis happily sat next to Porthos and looked at him.

“What do we want to build?” Aramis asked. “Do we want to do something utterly stupid like the Death Star or something easier like the pyramid in front of the Louvre?”

“Maybe not the Death Star”, Porthos said with a shy smile. “What about the Pompidou Centre? That should be easy enough.”

“Yes, that’s good”, Aramis said. “How about we calculate the dimensions of the original first and then begin building the miniature?”

“Sure”, Porthos said and moved his chair so that his outer thigh touched Aramis’. Aramis inhaled deeply when he realised there was a weird sort of tingling on his thigh and in his stomach. He looked at Porthos and suddenly felt his cheeks heating up as he quickly returned his gaze on the papers in front of him. Hadn’t he really realised how good Porthos’ lips would be for kissing? Or how perfect his face looked?

 _Oh fuck_ , Aramis thought when he realised where his thoughts were taking him. He had a massive crush on the man – no, not a man, just a boy – sitting next to him.

 _But I’m straight_ , Aramis thought to himself. _Or have I missed something? Yes, I’ve probably missed something. Big. Oh god why couldn’t this realisation have come, say, not at school?_

“Did you hear anything I just said?” Porthos asked from Aramis’ right.

“Uh… There were numbers?” Aramis asked uncertainly. Porthos sighed.

“I said that I have the height, width and depth of the building”, Porthos said. “Isn’t that all we need?”

“Ah, yes”, Aramis said and began calculating the dimensions while chewing on his lower lip and trying to sneak a small touch on Porthos’ hand.

 _Oh, papá is so going to murder me when he finds out_ , Aramis thought to himself miserably.

* * *

They were having football at the gym class when it happened. Aramis was about to score a point for his team when someone tackled him and sent his thin frame flying until it connected with the wall with a horrible smacking sound. He landed in a heap on the floor and wouldn’t move. Porthos immediately ran to Aramis who was hissing in pain. Aramis’ face looked so beautiful even when it wore a grimace caused by pain. Porthos was distantly aware of the teacher blowing into the whistle for a time-out.

“What happened?” the teacher demanded. “Are you alright, d’Herblay?”

“God, it hurts”, Aramis hissed through his teeth as he rolled on his back. “Don’t think I can play…”

“I can take him to monsieur Lemay”, Porthos offered. “I was in the opposite team anyway so both teams will lose one player.”

“Fair enough”, the teacher said. “Now, go.”

Porthos helped Aramis up and began leading Aramis towards the school nurse’s office. Aramis was quietly hissing in pain as they walked. Porthos’ stomach did a backflip when he thought how bruised Aramis’ slender frame must have been; there was not much muscle in Aramis’ torso so his ribs must have been bruised if not broken. They had to take a few breathers and Porthos couldn’t take his eyes off Aramis’ lips that looked so kissable.

It was as if Porthos hadn’t ever seen Aramis before. His messy hair seemed so perfect as did his whole face. Even with pain etched in his features he looked the most handsome Porthos had ever seen anyone. It was like someone had decided to take a look into Porthos’ brain and sculpt the perfect person for Porthos.

“This is honestly so stupid”, Aramis laughed as they continued walking. “The only time I get injured at gym it has to be when we’re playing something I actually enjoy; my typical luck.”

“Well, I, for one, am glad that you can still walk”, Porthos said. “It wouldn’t be nice if you had to go to hospital because I couldn’t have gone with you.”

“Why would you want to go with me?” Aramis asked amusedly. The amusement in his voice made Porthos’ stomach do another backflip. Even Aramis’ voice was perfect. Oh, he needed to get Aramis to monsieur Lemay quickly before his knees would go too weak to carry him.

“I want to make sure you’re alright”, Porthos said. “The sound that you made when you collided with the wall was anything but pleasant.”

“I’m fine, Porthos”, Aramis said weakly as they reached the nurse’s office. “You shouldn’t worry about me so much.”

They, or rather Porthos, knocked on monsieur Lemay’s door but there was no answer. Aramis’ shoulders slumped and he sat down on one of the chairs in the waiting room. He sighed and looked at his hands.

“I… I have something to tell you”, Aramis said suddenly.

“What is it?” Porthos asked as he sat down on another chair. Aramis was nervously fidgeting with the hem of his shirt and staring at his hands.

“I, uh… I kind of like you”, Aramis whispered. “A lot. I like you a lot and uh… I know you probably aren’t even into boys so I just, uh, could we still, you know, be friends? It’s just a dumb crush; I’m sure it’ll pass…”

Monsieur Lemay chose that exact moment to walk in and Porthos’ brain short-circuited. He watched as Aramis explained what had happened and Lemay opened the door to his office. It wasn’t until Aramis motioned Porthos to follow that Porthos’ brain let him move again. He walked into monsieur Lemay’s office where Aramis was already sitting on another chair. Lemay asked him to take off his shirt and when Aramis did, Porthos winced at the forming bruises on his torso.

“What exactly happened?” Lemay asked as he saw the bruises.

“I was tackled”, Aramis said as Lemay began poking his torso, “into a wall. It kind of hurt.”

“Why can’t you boys be more careful just this once?” Lemay muttered. “You haven’t broken any of your ribs but you should definitely avoid sports for a few weeks. I’ll write your teacher and explain the situation so he’ll let you skip the classes. Also, you should get some salve to lessen the swelling; I can give you some recommendations but legally I’m not allowed to give you any of the actual salve…”

“I think my mom has some or can get some from the hospital she’s working in”, Aramis mumbled as Lemay turned away. Porthos seized the opportunity and sneaked a small kiss on Aramis’ lips. Aramis inhaled sharply as Porthos pulled away. They were both blushing scarlet and Lemay sighed.

“Please don’t start a full-blown make-out session here”, Lemay said. “The principal doesn’t like it…”

“Sorry”, Porthos mumbled, still blushing.

“No, no, it’s alright”, Lemay said. “Just please, whatever you do, do it with appropriate protection… I don’t want the kids who are my responsibility to catch anything…”

“Well try not to”, Aramis muttered while a soft grin was forming on his lips.

“Now, you’ll be free to go”, Lemay said and gave some papers to Aramis who was putting his shirt back on. “No sports for a few weeks and get something for the bruising. And please rest and if breathing becomes too hard, go to a hospital.”

“Okay”, Aramis said and walked back into the waiting room, followed by Porthos. When the door closed, he let out a long sigh and sat down.

“What do we do now?” Aramis asked quietly. He was blushing and staring at his hands again.

“We’ll probably go to the locker room to get our things and prepare for the next class”, Porthos said. “We have English, right?”

“No, I mean about us”, Aramis mumbled. “What do we do now? Do we do something about our feelings or do we just try to forget them?”

“Well, I won’t be able to forget what I feel”, Porthos said. “And I kind of like the backflips my stomach does because of you.”

“You’re so sweet”, Aramis muttered and chuckled. “Can I kiss you?”

“Well, since I already did, it’ll just be fair to let you do so”, Porthos said with a quiet laugh and was soon kissed by Aramis who had stood up. This kiss felt a lot better than the first one; Aramis certainly knew his way around kisses.

“No make-out sessions in the waiting room either, please”, Lemay’s voice sounded through the door. Aramis began laughing and had to pull away and lean on Porthos’ shoulder to laugh.

“Let’s go”, Aramis whispered. “I don’t want to be late from English.”

Porthos nodded and Aramis grabbed his hand, leading them away from the waiting room. Inside his office Lemay sighed and drank some coffee, wishing the two boys happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up: a lot of talking and coming out to parents :D Comments will be appreciated


	4. Together(ness)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyyyyy, I'm here again :D I was away at the family's summer cottage for a week and then the writer's block attacked but I'm alive!! As you can see, I have no talent for naming chapters so have a new chapter with a little weird name :"D

“Do you think we should tell someone? That we’re together, that is.”

Porthos looked up at Aramis’ face that was staring at the ceiling. They lay on Aramis’ huge bed, Porthos’ head resting on Aramis’ stomach while Aramis’ head was on the pillows. Aramis’ hand was holding Porthos’ while Porthos’ thumb was moving over Aramis’ knuckles in a gesture that seemed to calm Aramis down at any time he seemed to need it.

“It depends”, Porthos said. “I think your parents deserve to know; we’re spending time in their house the most after all… And if someone has to know, I’d rather have it be your parents instead of my uncle and his wife.”

“Should we tell them?” Aramis asked and squeezed Porthos’ fingers. “You have a fair point but I can’t help but think they’ll be angry…”

“Why would they be angry?” Porthos asked. “They’re the kindest people I’ve ever met; I can’t imagine them ever being angry at you for being in love.”

“But papá is a priest”, Aramis whispered. “The Bible…”

“…says many things that aren’t right anymore”, Porthos said. “Your parents were accepting of your sister so why wouldn’t they be accepting of you?”

“I really don’t know”, Aramis muttered and looked at Porthos’ eyes. “I guess I’m afraid they’ll be disappointed in me; I know they want grandchildren and it looks like my sisters don’t want children so I thought I’d have to get children…”

“We could adopt, you know?” Porthos asked jokingly. “Nothing is set in stone, Aramis; maybe you’ll find a nice girl you want to spend the rest of your life with…”

“But I like you; not some unknown nice girl”, Aramis protested. “I mean, I’m still just figuring out my feelings but I still like you. A lot.”

Porthos chuckled and rolled on his side to look in Aramis’ eyes. Aramis had a very uncertain look to his eyes as he looked first at Porthos and then back at the ceiling. He licked his lips and Porthos squeezed his fingers to reassure him. Aramis bit his lower lip and looked in Porthos’ eyes. Oh, how Porthos loved those dark brown eyes that seemed like they could hold the whole universe. His stomach made another backflip as Aramis looked at him and smiled apologetically.

“Mamá will be home in an hour or so”, Aramis said. “We can… we can go tell them after she gets home.”

“We don’t have to do it right away”, Porthos said and moved up to the same level with Aramis’ eyes. He kissed the tip of Aramis’ nose which made Aramis blush.

“I think it’s better to tell them right away”, Aramis said. “It’s better to rip off the band-aid once and for all.”

“Is that something your mother says?” Porthos asked with a grin. “I’ve never heard that kind of saying before…”

“Yup, she says that a lot”, Aramis said. “And honestly, ripping off a band-aid hurts like hell so she’s right. It’s better to go and tell them so we won’t have to worry about their reactions any more than necessary.”

“It’ll be fine”, Porthos said and kissed Aramis’ forehead. “Your father will support us, I’m sure of that.”

“I’m glad you can be sure because I’m not very sure right now”, Aramis mumbled and smiled at Porthos.

The two boys lay on the bed until they heard the front door opening. Aramis squeezed Porthos’ fingers once more before sitting up and taking a deep breath. Porthos kissed his cheek and gave him a reassuring smile.

“Just like ripping off a band-aid”, Aramis muttered, making Porthos chuckle.

“You certainly are a son of a doctor”, Porthos said, grinning. Aramis nodded and slowly led Porthos downstairs. Diana was sitting in the living room and reading a book while Oscar was sitting at the dining table reading a magazine of some sort.

“Um… I have something to tell you”, Aramis said. Diana looked up from her book and smiled at Aramis.

“Is it about you being tackled in gym class?” Diana asked. “I got a message from your teacher so you better not try to take part in gym class for at least two weeks. In fact, you should show me your bruises.”

“No, it’s not about that”, Aramis said. “I mean, that did happen but I kind of forgot about it – stop laughing, Porthos, I can’t remember everything! I mean… um… Porthos and I are kind of… together…”

“Well, yes, you’re standing together in the stairway”, Oscar said without missing a beat, making Porthos howl with laughter.

“No!” Aramis exclaimed in frustration. “We’re together as in dating! He’s my boyfriend.”

“Oh”, Oscar said. “You’re going to need a bigger bed, then, René.”

“Oh my god”, Aramis muttered and hid his face in his hands. Porthos continued laughing and led Aramis to sit down on the sofa.

“Please show me those bruises, René”, Diana said with a small smile on her face. “We can talk about the relationship deal later.”

Aramis sighed and took his shirt off. He grimaced as the movement pulled his bruised ribs and muscles and hissed when Diana poked at his ribs.

“That looks painful”, Diana commented. “There’s some swelling… I think I have some salve for it. Wait here, I’ll go get it.”

Aramis nodded and sighed. Diana got up and went to look for the salve as Aramis leaned back on the sofa. Porthos grinned at Aramis and grabbed his hand.

“See, I told you it’d be fine”, Porthos whispered. Aramis hummed and leaned his head on Porthos’ shoulder.

“What do you mean?” Oscar asked, looking up from his book. “Were you stressing about telling us?”

“Kind of”, Aramis said quietly. “I mean, the Bible…”

“Damn the Bible if it hurts my children”, Oscar said. “In the end, it’s just an old book with a lot of outdated information. None of the moral guidelines in it should be seen as absolute laws.”

“Oh, thank god”, Aramis sighed. He slid down a little into a more comfortable position as Diana returned in the living room.

“What is it?” Diana asked as she looked at Aramis’ relieved expression.

“Our René seems to have been afraid to tell us about himself and Porthos”, Oscar explained.

“Oh”, Diana said as it all dawned to her. “Well I do have something to say. I need Porthos to promise he won’t hurt René and René promise he won’t hurt Porthos.”

“Of course”, Porthos said. “I mean why would I hurt the person I like?”

“Some people do that”, Diana said with a shadow of sadness on her features. “My first boyfriend did which is why I want both of you to promise you won’t hurt each other.”

“I promise”, Aramis said. “If anyone tries to hurt Porthos, they’ll have to get through me.”

“Aramis, you’re a twig”, Porthos said. “Anything can get through you. Even that tiny dog of your neighbour’s.”

Diana began laughing as Aramis gave Porthos the most scandalised look he could conjure up. She began applying the salve she’d looked for on Aramis’ bruises and Aramis hissed again. As soon as Diana was done, she patted Aramis’ shoulder.

“Keep away from sports for a few weeks and you should be fine, René”, Diana said. “And boys, it was good of you to tell us about your relationship.”

“I was starting to think they’d never tell us”, Oscar mumbled. “René has been making heart eyes at Porthos for almost a month.”

“You waited for a month to tell me about your feelings?” Porthos asked with wide eyes. “Why on Earth did you wait so long?”

“I thought you wouldn’t even like me in that way!” Aramis protested. “And what do you mean by waiting; didn’t you wait at all?”

“I literally realised my feelings today”, Porthos said. “And about five minutes later you dropped the bomb in my face. Couldn’t really wait long.”

“Oh god”, Aramis muttered as he leaned his head on Porthos’ shoulder, hiding his face in the crook of Porthos’ neck.

“God will get angry at you soon if you keep repeating his name”, Oscar said, not lifting his gaze from the magazine.

“You just dismissed the Bible, papá”, Aramis muttered. “Let me repeat God’s name a little.”

Porthos chuckled and hugged Aramis’ shirtless form. It was a relief to be accepted by at least one family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts, opinions and ideas for future chapters are always loved, appreciated and cherished


	5. Athos

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! I haven't abandoned the story yet, there was just an accidental unannounced hiatus here, haha
> 
> This chapter is a little darker than the others and deals with death and grief as well as attempted rape so proceed with caution! I hope you'll enjoy the chapter nonetheless :D

It was a Monday afternoon when Aramis realised he hadn’t seen Athos at all during the day. He shared quite a few classes with Athos whom he almost considered a friend even though Athos was rather quiet and a little bit gloomy. It was very unusual for Athos to skip class or to get sick which made Aramis worried; Athos not being at school must have meant something was going on with him. Aramis considered calling Athos but perhaps Athos would not have appreciated it since Aramis only had Athos’ phone number because of a group project they’d both been in. Instead of calling, he decided to text Athos.

“Everything alright?” Porthos asked when he noticed Aramis staring at Athos’ empty seat.

“I’m just a bit worried”, Aramis whispered, “Athos is hardly ever absent. I’ll text him to make sure he’s fine after class.”

“Good idea”, Porthos whispered and then asked, “who is he?”

“A friend, I guess”, Aramis said. “I don’t know him that well; he’s pretty quiet all the time.”

“Okay”, Porthos mumbled and returned his attention to the board. Aramis smiled at him for a bit and began listening to the teacher again. He’d text Athos as soon as the class was dismissed.

 **Aramis [14:48]  
** You weren’t at school today, are you alright?

 **Athos [14:51]  
** Fuck you

 **Aramis [14:53]**  
Wow that’s rude  
Need me to take notes for you?

 **Athos [14:56]**  
It’d be nice  
I don’t know when I’ll be back at school

Aramis sighed. Athos clearly didn’t want to tell Aramis what was going on which meant that Aramis wouldn’t pry. Although he hadn’t known Athos for long, he had learned that Athos was a very private person who, once he trusted someone enough, would share his secrets after some time with those he deemed worthy.

“What did he say?” Porthos asked. Aramis couldn’t help but smile at him; he probably didn’t even remember Athos but as soon as Aramis had started worrying about Athos, Porthos had begun worrying with him.

“He told me to fuck myself”, Aramis said. “Something is wrong but he’s not ready to share it yet.”

“That’s… rude?” Porthos said questioningly.

“Athos is”, Aramis said and smiled. “Want to come over to my place after classes?”

“That’d be nice”, Porthos said. “Nobody’s home, as usual, so I’d rather be with you.”

Aramis smiled and ruffled Porthos’ hair. They walked to the classroom of their next class and sat next to each other.

When the duo arrived home, they saw Oscar reading a newspaper in the living room. In the front page was a big headline of a stabbed son of a rich family. Aramis frowned because the son looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t put his fingers around it.

“Oh, hey there, boys”, Oscar said. “If you want any snacks to eat, I’ve baked some bread and it’s still warm so help yourselves.”

“Thank you”, Porthos said. “You bake bread?”

“It’s usually René and Diana who do but I like to try my hand once in a while as well”, Oscar said. “It’s very relaxing.”

“Sounds like it”, Porthos said. “I’ve never baked bread myself.”

“We’ll have to bake some together sometime”, Aramis said, smiling. Porthos nodded, unknowing to the relentless worry Aramis felt for Athos.

* * *

It was Friday when Athos finally returned to the school. He looked gloomier than usual and wouldn’t answer to anyone when talked to. It was only when Aramis and Porthos cornered him during lunch that he spoke.

“You alright?” Aramis asked as they’d finished their lunch and found Athos. “You look like you haven’t slept enough.”

“That’s none of your business”, Athos muttered. “Leave me alone.”

“I was wondering if you’d want to come over to my place tonight after school”, Aramis continued, “Porthos is coming too and you two could stay overnight, if you want to.”

“Shut up!” Athos shouted and swung his fist at Aramis who dodged it effortlessly. Instead of backing away, he caught Athos in a hug and noticed that Athos was trembling.

“You’re trembling”, Aramis mumbled. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on now, or will you tell me later?”

“Just stop talking”, Athos said quietly, sounding almost pleading. “I’ll come to your place if it shuts you up now.”

“We’ll see you in a few hours, then”, Aramis said softly as he pulled away from the hug. “I think my mother has made some cinnamon rolls that we could eat.”

“Whatever”, Athos mumbled as he walked away from Aramis and Porthos. Aramis shook his head as he followed Porthos to the classroom.

“Do you think he’s fine?” Porthos asked quietly.

“No way in hell”, Aramis said. “I feel like he’s on the verge of a breakdown.”

“Poor guy”, Porthos said. “I hope he’ll tell us what’s going on.”

“I think he will”, Aramis said. “He’ll just need time.”

In the evening Athos did come over to Aramis’ house. He was very quiet and would hardly speak a word other than to greet Aramis and Aramis’ parents. Otherwise he stayed mostly silent, only speaking when spoken to.

“Want to tell us what’s been going on with you lately?” Porthos asked. “You’re clearly not okay.”

“What do you care?” Athos snarled. “We don’t even know each other. I’m here only because Aramis wouldn’t stop pestering me.”

“And I’m here because I’m worried”, Porthos said calmly. “Aramis has been worried about you and even I can see you’re not well.”

“And I want to help”, Aramis said softly. “I already kind of consider you a friend of sorts and I’d hate to see you suffer alone.”

“Fuck you”, Athos mumbled. He was breathing harshly, like a man on the verge of a panic attack.

“Fuck _you_ , de la Fère!” Porthos said. “We’re trying to help you here!”

That was when it hit Aramis. The murdered son of the rich family had been called Thomas de la Fère. He must have been related to Athos in some way.

He must have been Athos’ brother. That would make sense.

“Your brother died, didn’t he?” Aramis whispered, looking at Athos with wide eyes. “That’s why you weren’t at school…”

“Shut up!” Athos shouted and swung his arm at Aramis in an attempt to punch him. Aramis, however, dodged, making Athos stumble forward and almost fall over. For a moment, Athos would only breathe raggedly and look at the floor before tears suddenly started to gather into his eyes.

Aramis instantly moved to hug Athos as Athos let out a quiet sob. After a few sobs more, Porthos sat down next to the two and began rubbing circles on Athos’ back. Soon there was a knock on the door and Oscar opened the door.

“Is everything alright?” he asked. “I heard shouting.”

“Not really”, Aramis mumbled. “Can you make some cocoa, papá? I think we’ll need a lot of cocoa here…”

“Of course”, Oscar said. “I’ll get you boys some marshmallows too.”

“Thanks, papá”, Aramis said as he began rocking Athos back and forth gently.

“F-fuck this”, Athos hiccupped between his sobs. “Fuck everything… What did I do to deserve this?”

“You didn’t do anything”, Aramis whispered. “Sometimes terrible things happen without reason. What we can do is support each other after something terrible happens.”

“My girlfriend killed him”, Athos hiccupped. “She said he’d forced himself on her… He could never have done that… not my little Thomas…”

“Sometimes we don’t know the people we think we know”, Aramis whispered. “He probably didn’t do it but if it turns out to be true, you should be ready to accept it.”

“This is all damn fucked up”, Porthos muttered. “I’m so sorry, mate.”

“You can stay here overnight if you want to”, Aramis said. “You won’t have to face home just yet if you don’t want to.”

“Thanks”, Athos mumbled against Aramis’ shoulder.

They knew it wouldn’t be fixed with cocoa and hugs but their friendship would help with the grief, at least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts, opinions and whatever comes to your mind is always welcomed and loved here!


End file.
